Starmer hopes Scholz and Macron can help him soften Brexit – but is his strategy doomed to fail?

Sign up to our free Brexit and beyond email for the latest headlines on what Brexit is meaning for the UK Sign up to our Brexit email for the latest insight Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Starmer meets Macron in Paris It is clear that Starmer hopes he can use these two key relationships to help reverse the harms and effects of Brexit without officially reversing Brexit itself. The prime minister met German chancellor Olaf Scholz in Berlin on Wednesday The centrepiece of the Starmer strategy is to turn around a quick bilateral deal with Germany on trade, travel, crime, defence, migration and much more in just six months. Starmer has disappointed many by insisting he will not reverse Brexit by trying to take the UK back into the EU or even the single market or customs union. It may be that they can help Starmer get the deal he wants, but if it is to be anything more than tinkering with something that is fundamentally flawed, then Starmer, who has made it clear he is unwilling to compromise even on a youth mobility scheme, may need to make much bigger concessions.